DOJ welcomes SC nod on Precautionary Hold Departure Orders

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Justice on Wednesday hailed the Supreme Court allowing the issuance of Precautionary Hold Departure Orders against suspects.

Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra said that this directive will empower the DOJ to “prevent the flight of persons found probably guilty, during the preliminary investigation stage.”

The PHDO will also help keep suspects accused of having committed serious offenses such as drug trading, human trafficking, large-scale estafa and terrorism from fleeing the country, said Guevarra in a message to reporters.

“I am so happy that the SC understands the predicament of the DOJ resulting from the court’s previous ruling which nullified the [Hold Departure Orders, Watchlist Orders] etc issued by the DOJ,” the justice chief added.

Last month, The STAR reported that the SC struck down with finality former Justice Secretary Leila De Lima authorization of WLOs, which allows the justice chief to bar suspects and personalities facing charges from leaving the country.

The WLO has the same effect as an HDO that only courts could issue.

The WLO was used to bar former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, who was then facing electoral sabotage charges, from leaving the country for a medical checkup abroad.

Acting Prosecutor General Richard Fadullon, meanwhile, said that the PHDO provides state prosecution with “an avenue to possibly deter individuals with serious criminal cases from just leaving the country in order to frustrate the ends of justice, while the preliminary investigation is still ongoing,”

Although he said that the application for a PHDO is more tedious—as it involves going to a trial court—the issuance of a PHDO is a “welcome development.”

The PHDO shall be issued in cases where the accused is facing a charge where the minimum penalty prescribed by the law is at least six years and one day.

SC spokesperson Theodore Te, on Tuesday, stressed that the determination of finding probable cause on flight risk “shall be without prejudice to the resolution by the prosecutor of any criminal complaint during the preliminary investigation.”

A prosecutor may apply for the PHDO before any regional court within the territorial jurisdiction the alleged crime was committed.

Immigration Look Out Bulletin

When the SC issued a halt order against the WLOs, De Lima implemented the issuance of the Immigration Lookout Bulletin Order.  The ILBO tasks Immigration agents with alerting the DOJ should subjects attempt to leave the country.

This was also implemented by her successor, Vitaliano Aguirre II, who resigned last April.

Guevarra said that the DOJ is reviewing the use of the ILBO, but will not issue one in the meantime.

“The ILBO is supposed to be a mere travel monitoring mechanism, but we are reviewing it to remove any seemingly restrictive features, in light of the recent SC decision in Arroyo v De Lima,” he said.

The Justice chief also said that with this new rule on PHDOs, he hopes that a law maybe passed that will empower justice chiefs to restrict travels of respondents to serious cases.

“We are hoping that Congress will enact a law that will directly empower the SOJ to restrict the right to travel of persons under preliminary investigation for very serious offenses to constitutional limitations,” he added.